Pudong, Shanghai - From the 1990's to now.

by fulltimestudent 13 Replies latest social current

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  fulltimestudent

  If Howard was shocked that day (now over 10 years ago), he must be more shocked now. All over China, there are increasing signs of prosperity. This is not argument that China is now rich, yes! it is in part, but the Chinese government acknowledges that there is a long way to go.

  Here's the comment that the Australian PM made last night, as reported in The Australian newspaper (owned by Rupert Murdoch, for the record.

  " Promising “fine beef and good wine” for the growing Chinese middle class, Mr Abbott said the economic rise of China was “the greatest advance of prosperity ever seen in the history of mankind”.
  “This is a momentous day. It’s a happy day between friends. It is the day that we seal the deal,” he said.
  “It will change our countries for the better, it will change our region for better, it will change our world for the better.”
  Chinese commerce Minister Gao Hucheng said the CHAFTA deal was of major significance and would benefit the industries and consumers of both countries.
  “(The FTA) has the highest degree of liberalisation of all the free trade agreements that China has so far signed,” Dr Gao said through a translator.
  “This signing is going to provide us with more open, convenient and regulated institutional arrangements for our trade and investment exchanges going forward.”
  Trade Minister Andrew Robb said the agreement between the two countries, which will deliver a $20 billion boost to trade by 2035, had required a “super effort” of goodwill and hard work.
  “It will take our relationship to another level,” he said.

  Link: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/free-trade-agreement-australia-china-mark-happy-day/story-e6frg8zx-1227402185200

  Of course, its more complicated than that, but it gives (as an example) Australian farmers the opportunity to scout out the Chinese market and learn to grow products that will sell in China and to do that on a level playing field. It also gives other business people the opportunity to grow their businesses in the Chinese market-place.
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  fulltimestudent

  I have to get ready to go out soon, its just on 3.00 pm in Oz, and I want to got to a lecture at Sydney U at 6.00 pm and hopefully have coffee with a friend before, so I will make one short response now and respond as neccessary tomorrow.

  Simon: Developed civilizations have to put pressure on developing people to make it clear what is and isn't acceptable and I think trade and publicity are valid weapons to do this.

  You are free to view the problem from whatever perspective you choose and to believe in whatever actions you think will fix the problem.

  But sometimes (speaking generally), with some problems, you cant just "tell" people what you consider is acceptable or not acceptable.

  Japan is a reasonably wealthy nation, there is no reason why they need to kill whales and dolphins for food. But their response is, that they 'like' whale meat, and anyway (as far as Australia is concerned) why do you have to slaughter kangaroos, and not even for food (actually, it is for food, as kangaroos eat the grass that farmers want to keep to feed sheep and cattle).

  So what's the next step - stop buying Japanese cars, or using electronic products (owned by the Japanese but made in China-smile).

  Telling people what to do doesn't work.

  I suggest that just as western values changed (think of Teddy Roosevelt acting like a big-game hunter in Africa in the early 20th C.) and became more compassionate toward animals, even though we still find people that abuse animals, so increasing prosperity will change the social values that make people appreciate other life forms. The idea, in a thread I posted, on seeing chimpanzees as 'persons' was not liked by some. But these discussions are part of the process by which social change occurs.

  I suggest the problem of 'dogs' as food is a problem that will change. A few weeks ago, in Shanghai I watched each morning as pampered pooches were taken for a walk by their doting owners. One little thing walked in a set of four matching booties. I smiled at the sight, but another part of my mind objected, I'd rather the dog live a more 'natural' life, but how can a dog do that in a big city.

  Anyway, for the record there were objections in China to the dog-meat festival in Yulin. The Australian Financial Review reported it this way:

  Last year, an estimated 10,000 dogs were slaughtered for the celebration.
  But this year, the festival has been mired in controversy as China’s army of netizens, among them animal rights activists and celebrities, armed with photographs of their cute dogs, launched a high-profile campaign to have it shut down.
  This campaign has attracted its own backlash. Supporters of the festival say it is not breaking any Chinese laws and activists, particularly foreigners, should not be allowed to interfere with local customs and traditions. Tied up in the debate is China’s increasing openness to Western values and culture, which some believe is eroding its own identity.
  “Eating or not eating dog meat is an old custom," said one dog-owner in a letter to theChina Daily. “We often apply modern standards to judge traditional customs and practices. Animal lovers, especially dog lovers, can stay away from dog meat, but they cannot force others to do the same. "

  Link: http://www.afr.com/news/world/asia/chinese-debate-ethics-of-eating-dogs-20140620-je1su

  BTW, the Chinese are not the only dog-eaters in the world, the (south) Koreans are also. What do you think should be done to force the Koreans to refrain from eating dog? A friend (whenever he returns to Korea) is fed dog-meat by his mother - to keep him healthy.
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  fulltimestudent

  the lecture I've booked for tonite, looks at 'value' in the context of urban change. That's related to the change in (social) 'values.'

  .

  PUBLIC LECTURE: MIDDLE CLASS AND THE PRODUCTION OF VALUE IN CHINESE CITIES
  18 June 2015
  Performing Civilization.
  Middle Class and the Production of Value in Chinese Cities .
  Luigi Tomba (Australian Centre on China in the World)
  China’s rapid urbanization is both an economic and a political project. On one side it promotes a rebalancing of the Chinese economy towards a consumer society; on the other it engineers the new affluent groups as exemplars of China’s new social and political order.
  This talk investigates the practical and material consequences of the government’s discourse of a “civilized” middle class on China’s urban governance and addresses the significance of stratification and segregation for the overall project of governing Chinese cities. The discourse and practices it produces are functional to the creation of “value.” Urban renewal and the rebranding of traditional urban centers as postindustrial and global metropolises rely heavily on the promotion of “middle-class” exemplarism. In this process two different types of “value” are created. By targeting the middle class as a potential buyer, the state increases the value of its land-use rights, thus making it more attractive for local authorities to redevelop traditional, dilapidated industrial areas, to rebrand them as “middle class paradises.” Also, the educated and affluent groups inhabiting the new compounds become exemplars of a self-responsible well-behaved and “high-quality ” citizenry that embodies the values of the civilizing project on which China has embarked.
  
  Speaker:
  Dr Luigi Tomba is a political scientist and the associate director of the Australian Centre on China in the World (Australian National University), where he conducts research on urban politics and urbanization in China. His most recent book is The Government Next Door: Neighborhood Politics in Urban China, (Cornell University Press, 2014). He was until the end of 2014 the co-editor of The China Journ
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  Simon

  Consumers have the ultimate power on the planet. All countries change if people stop buying their crap or investing.

  Words do help too. People care how they are perceived by others including at the country level. Right now the Chinese are copying the west like crazy. They care about image.

  The stupid people may not but others that do can put pressure on them or push to enact laws.